Nothing is more devastating than a cancer diagnosis. Fortunately, many cancers are curable, albeit with painful and miserable treatments. What if the treatment has permanent undesirable side effects of which the patient was unaware? Who is to be held accountable then? Sadly, manufacturers of the drug Taxotere have created and marketed just such a treatment. If you have suffered serious or irreversible side-effects after being prescribed Taxotere, a personal injury attorney may be able to help you recover damages to compensate for your suffering.

Why is Taxotere Prescribed?

Taxotere is one of many IV chemotherapy drugs used in the treatment of breast cancer and other aggressive cancers such as advanced stomach cancer, prostate cancer, and non-small cell lung cancer. Chemotherapy drugs are designed to damage the RNA or DNA in cells, impairing a cell’s ability to copy itself and divide. When they cannot divide, they die, leading tumors to shrink. Some chemotherapy drugs, such as Taxotere, assault cells during multiple phases of cell division. But because the drugs cannot differentiate between cancerous and healthy cells, normal cells are also impacted. Typically, the mouth, bowel, stomach and hair follicles are most susceptible to the impacts of chemotherapy drugs, resulting in unpleasant symptoms. In the case of Taxotere, symptoms may be more dramatic due to the amplified potency of the drug.

Posted Side Effects

Makers of Taxotere acknowledge certain side effects will occur, including:

Inflammation, redness, swelling and discoloration of the vein at the infusion site.

Legal Claims Against Manufacturers of Taxotere

One of the most devastating side effects of Taxotere is permanent hair loss. Moreover, the manufacturer of the drug, Sanofi,-Aventis has known about the problem for decades. In their own research, it was revealed that nearly one in 10 women suffered this consequence. Instead of sharing these research results with doctors and their patients, Sanofi-Aventis buried the facts amid murky warnings that in no way prepared women for a future of hairlessness. While physicians in Europe received warnings in 2005, and Canadians in 2012, doctors in the USA were told of the potential hazards much later. In fact, labels warning of permanent hair loss were not provided in this country until late 2015.

The number of women who suffer permanent hair loss may be even higher than previously thought according to The Clatterbridge Cancer Center. Their study indicates that over 15 percent of women have been impacted by this life-changing symptom. Experts acknowledge that a woman’s quality of life may be significantly impacted by the condition. The Rocky Mountain Cancer Center calls it an “emotionally devastating” impact of cancer treatment, and one that should be considered when chemotherapy programs are designed for cancer patients.

Claims that Taxotere regimens have resulted in these serious complications have led women to turn to the courts for a legal remedy for their concerns.

Permanent Scalp Alopecia, or hair loss, is a particularly distressing side effect that has left many breast cancer survivors reeling. One cancer survivor put it this way: “It’s like having ‘I am a cancer sufferer’ tattooed on your forehead.” Hair loss may occur anywhere on the body, including the scalp, eyebrows, eyelashes, underarms, and genital area. Despite a variety of treatments including vitamins, psoralen, and ultraviolet A therapy, some patients never regain complete hair growth. Women assert that this permanent hair loss precludes them from living a normal, happy life, and studies confirm this. In one study, patients were evaluated based on specific impacts of permanent scalp alopecia on their lives, and were found to suffer deficiencies in a number of critical areas:

Elevated awareness of symptoms;

Levels of humiliation or discomfiture;

Participation in daily activities outside the home;

Choices in attire;

Participation in leisure activities;

Involvement in sports;

Relationships, romantic and otherwise;

Sexual problems;

Confidence in treatments; and

Negative impacts on work and/or school.

Coping With Hair Loss

For women, hair is often central to self-perception and identity. Managing the mental and emotional impacts of losing one’s hair can be difficult, particularly when the loss is permanent. Experts offer some suggestions to make the road easier:

Learn what you can about the specific things that are happening to your hair follicles. Knowledge is power.

Anticipate questions from friends, coworkers and family, and questioning looks from strangers. Be prepared with responses that you are comfortable with.

Join a support group. You may gain a lot from the empathy and experience of others, and glean some coping strategies that might otherwise elude you. Even if you cannot find a local group of women with whom to meet, Internet groups are available.

Find resources designed to assist individuals who are dealing with the side effects of cancer treatment. Organizations such as the American Cancer Society, Cancer Care, and Look Good, Feel Better are all places worth connecting with.

Be honest with your children and grandchildren. They may have uncomfortable reactions to your hair loss, and need age-appropriate discussions about what is going on and how you are feeling.

Take control of other aspects of your life. Fight back. You’ve already suffered through cancer, and now this new challenge confronts you. Don’t take it lying down. Fight for justice.

Your Fight for Justice

If you have been blind sighted with permanent hair loss following the use of Taxotere, it is possible to gain some level of satisfaction, not to mention financial remuneration, by going after the company that manufactured and distributed this dangerous drug.

At the Roger Ghai Law Offices, our legal team understands the physical and emotional distress you have suffered due to the deceptive and negligent actions of Sanofi-Aventis in relation to the drug Taxotere. It’s time to send a message to drug companies: when injuries occur due to negligence, a price will be paid. Contact us in Atlanta, Marietta and Kennesaw for a personalized consultation today.

Chemotherapy drug Taxotere is at the center of a class action lawsuit alleging the drug’s manufacturer (Sanofi-Aventis) failed to warn patients and treating physicians of the increased risk of permanent hair loss – known as alopecia – for those patients who were taking this prescription drug. The lawsuits claim if these cancer patients had been prescribed an alternate chemotherapy drug, Taxol, it not only would have been more effective but the patients would not have suffered from alopecia as a side effect. All the cases that have been filed against Sanofi-Aventis in federal court have been consolidated into one case before a New Orleans federal judge as a result of multi-district litigation.

Taxotere’s Purpose

Taxotere, also known as docetaxel, is an FDA-approved chemotherapy drug for the treatment of several cancers including: breast, non-small cell, lung, head and neck, advanced stomach, and metastatic prostate cancers. A member of the family of drugs known as “taxanes,” Taxotere is administered intravenously through the veins. Taxotere’s purpose is to try to prevent cancer cells from growing, dividing, and multiplying.

Generally, Taxotere is used in combination with other drugs in the fight against cancer and often provides patients with a higher chance of survival. Some drugs that are used in combination with Taxotere include cisplatin, capecitabine, doxorubicin, fluorouracil, and cyclophosphamide. Taxotere acts as an antimitotic agent, which means it prevents cellular division. Typically the intravenous administration of the drug consists of a one-hour long infusion cycle repeated every three to four weeks.

Statistics show doctors prescribe Taxotere to treat the majority of breast cancer cases in the United States. It is estimated that as many as 300,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer every year. In fact, Taxotere is the most prescribed drug in its class, yielding its manufacturer Sanofi-Aventis more than $3 billion in profits in 2009 before the company lost its patent protection on the drug.

Side Effects of Taxotere

The most serious possible side effect for a cancer patient being treated with Taxotere is neutropenic enterocolitis. This is a rare – but fatal – inflammation of a small pouch located at the top of the large intestine. As can be seen by the current class action lawsuits against the drug’s manufacturer, another potentially devastating side effect of Taxotere is permanent hair loss (alopecia). Research shows about nine percent of breast cancer patients suffered alopecia that lasted at least 10 years.

Other side effects of Taxotere include:

diarrhea,

constipation,

fatigue and weakness,

bone pain,

muscle pain,

joint pain,

risk of infections,

low red blood cell count (anemia),

fluid retention,

weight gain,

swelling of the ankles,

swelling of the abdomen,

low white blood cell count,

nail discoloration

nausea,

peripheral neuropathy,

sores in the mouth or throat; and

changes in taste.

Taxotere Litigation Allegations

Among the several allegations in the class action lawsuit against Sanofi-Aventis include that:

The drug s both defective and unreasonably dangerous;

The drug was negligently manufactured by Sanofi-Aventis;

Sanofi-Aventis failed to properly test the drug;

Sanofi-Aventis failed to properly warn doctors and patients of the potential risk of permanent hair loss;

Sanofi-Aventis concealed available research and evidence of the dangers of the drug; and

Sanofi-Aventis misrepresented the safety and effectiveness of the drug in its marketing and promotional material.

A Cancer Treatment Review published study revealed Taxotere produced no more benefits over its competitor, Paclitaxel (also known as Taxol and Onxol), and often required treating physicians to prescribe higher doses due to drug resistance. Moreover, alopecia warnings were not indicated for Taxotere that was sold in the United States until 2015 – this is almost two decades after the chemotherapy drug was introduced into the American marketplace. As early as 2005 and 2006 studies were revealing a trend of permanent alopecia in patients who took the drug for cancer treatment. A 2010 paper published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology pointed out an increase in the number of reports of permanent alopecia – and Taxotere was thought responsible for some of these.

Recovering Damages in a Taxotere Lawsuit

Women who are suffering from chemotherapy-related hair loss suffer emotional and psychological side effects beyond the physical difficulty of battling with cancer. The loss of hair has been linked to lowered self-esteem, feelings of depression and loss, decreased self-confidence and other emotional issues. While both genders can be affected by the psychological impact of hair loss, women are often hit especially hard.

A personal injury lawsuit on behalf of someone who has suffered injuries as a result of taking Taxotere during chemotherapy treatment may provide monetary compensation for damages suffered. These include:

Medical expenses, including therapy and psychological counseling;

Lost wages, both past and future;

Mental anguish;

Emotional distress;

Permanent disfigurement; and

Diminished quality of life.

Because each individual’s case is as unique as the parties involved, the amount of damages that may be available through a personal injury lawsuit depends on the harm suffered by the victim as well as other factors.

In order to be eligible to possibly have a valid claim against Sanofi-Aventis in a Taxotere lawsuit you must have: (1) taken the drug as part of chemotherapy treatment prescribed by your doctor; (2) developed permanent hair loss (alopecia), as diagnosed by a doctor; and (3) suffered a demonstrable loss as a result of the diagnosis.

Taxotere Litigation Attorneys

Breast cancer chemotherapy drug Taxotere has been linked to a higher risk of permanent hair loss, known as alopecia, than other chemotherapy drugs. Because women are on average more likely to develop breast cancer than men, thousands of women have reported this side effect. Individuals who have experienced permanent alopecia may be eligible to file a lawsuit if it can be shown that its manufacturer, Sanofi-Aventis, failed to provide patients and their doctors appropriate warnings about the risk of this condition. The knowledgeable attorneys at the Roger Ghai Law Offices have years of experience representing the injured.Click here today to schedule your initial, free, case evaluation.